New Student Information

Are you ready to get started, new NINER?

Charlotte C

Welcome and congratulations!

Once you have completed your New Student Orientation modules in Canvas, follow the steps in the appropriate section below to prepare for your first day of classes. These steps will guide you through the course registration process and set you up for SUCCESS!

The W.S. Lee College of Engineering wants students to graduate, in a timely fashion, with a degree that prepares them for a successful, fulfilling and exciting career that offers many opportunities. Freshmen should get involved early and often so that they can succeed academically and professionally. Come learn and grow with us!

Prospect for Success (PFS) is UNC Charlotte’s commitment to helping freshmen become intentional, curious and aware. Through carefully designed courses, co-curricular experiences and extracurricular programs, students develop their commitment to success, inquiry skills and cultural awareness.

In the College of Engineering, PFS is integrated into Engineering Pathways (ENGR 1100), Introduction to Engineering (ENGR 1201) and Introduction to Engineering Technology (ETGR 1201), Introduction to Construction Management (CMET 1400), the residential Freshman Learning Community (FLC), MAPS (Maximizing Academic and Professional Success), Engage ME!, and academic advising.

First Time in College (FTIC) Students

Math Placement Level:

Establishing a Math Placement Level is crucial before registering for courses. The Engineering and Engineering Technology and Construction Management program relies on foundational mathematics. Your math placement determines the courses you are eligible to take in your first semester. Without a math level, you will not be able to register for much other than general education courses.

Ways to establish a Math Placement Level:

  • MATH SAT or MATH ACT scores
  • Taking the UNC Charlotte Math Placement Test

Impacts on Registration:

Because many of the science and engineering courses are tied to the foundational math courses, starting with a Math Level lower than the listed level for your major will lengthen your path to graduation. This path can be adjusted by taking summer courses. You can create an action plan with your major advisor to determine if you should consider taking summer classes.

  • Look at the table below to see how your math placement level or your test scores will correlate with a math course.
Math Placement Level Chart

First-Time In College (FTIC) students in the W.S. Lee College of Engineering (LCOE) are required to take a Mathematics course in their first semester. You will choose your starting math course based on your Math Placement Level or AP, IB, Dual Enrollment/College Transfer, or Early College credit listed on your UNC Charlotte transcript. Your Official UNC Charlotte Advising Transcript can be found in Student Self-Service.

Finding your Advising Transcript:

  • Use your NinerNet credentials to Login to Student Self-Service. This is the purple gear icon in your My Charlotte Portal (my.charlotte.edu).
  • Click: Student Services/Student Accounts
  • Click: Student Records
  • Click: Advising Transcript
  • Click: Display Transcript
  • Your Math Placement Level will be noted here as ML1, ML2, ML3 or ML4

All credits received and processed are located under your Unofficial Transcript.

  • Scroll down the transcript to see all processed credits.

Choosing your starting math course:

  • Engineering students should begin in MATH 1103 or MATH 1241
  • Engineering Technology students should begin in MATH 1101 or MATH 1103

Engineering majors with a Math Level: ML1 or ML2:

  • If you have an ML1 or ML2, you are encouraged to take the Math Placement Test to raise your Math Placement Level.

Note*: The Student Self-Service system will not allow you to register for a course in which you do not meet the prerequisite requirements on your Unofficial Transcript.

Students will have many decisions to make during their time at Charlotte. One of the most daunting yet exciting decisions is choosing a major. Have you chosen a major yet?

YES, I have chosen a major!

Great! You will need to download your Major Academic Plan of Study (APS). The APS will have all the required courses you need to receive credit for before graduating.

NO, I am still an ENGR or ETGR undecided major.

ENGR Majors:

  • ENGR (Engineering Undecided) majors will have until the end of their first semester to choose a major.
    • ENGR students must choose an engineering major plan of study to ‘follow’ their first semester.
  • ENGR (Engineering Undecided) majors can register for classes in their first semester without a firm commitment to an engineering major.
    • They still must use one of the Academic Plans of Study to follow their first semester.

ETGR Majors:

  • To best prepare for the demands of Engineering Technology & Construction Management courses, ETGR (Engineering Technology Undecided) majors must choose a major before registering for classes.
    • Most ETGR majors take major-specific courses in their first semester and therefore must declare a specific major.

To change your major, you will need to email Admissions and request a change of major.

Yes, but I want to change to another major before classes begin.

  • Students who have declared a major but would like to change to a different major before registering for classes begin will need to contact Admissions to have their major changed.
  • When emailing Admissions, include your Name, UNC Charlotte Student ID #, your current major, and the major you wish to change to.

Once you finish the New Student Orientation modules in Canvas, the Registration Hold on your student account will be removed after one business day. It is a student’s responsibility to send all high school transcripts and AP, IB, Dual Enrollment, or Early College credits to the Office of Admissions to be processed. In addition, students are expected to monitor their UNC Charlotte Advising Transcripts (found in Student Self-Service) to see when credits are posted and to make appropriate changes to their schedules.

Do you have AP, IB, Dual Enrollment/College Transfer, or Early College credit?

  • AP, IB, Dual Enrollment/College Transfer, or Early College credits will be added to your UNC Charlotte transcript when Admissions receives your official score report, College Transfer, or Early College transcripts.
    • AP scores typically post in early July (for Summer and Fall enrollment). Keep a lookout for your unofficial transcript in Student Self-Service.
    • Transfer students with AP scores must send scores through the College Board score reporting system. There is no way to transfer credits directly from one college to another
    • To see the credits and required exam scores, click here.
  • Ensure all official test scores and transcripts are sent to Admissions ASAP. You will need to re-register for semester classes once your UNC Charlotte transcript reflects your test scores and transfer credits.

Impacts on Registration:

  • AP, IB, Dual Enrollment/College Transfer, or Early College credit must appear on your Advising Transcript in Student Self Service before you can register for the next course in a sequence.
  • You will not be able to register for the next course in a sequence unless Admissions has received and added your AP, IB, Dual Enrollment/College Transfer, or Early College credit to your UNC Charlotte transcript.
    • For example, if you are expecting AP credit for MATH 1241 (Calculus I) but Admissions has not received your official score report, you will not be able to register for MATH 1242 (Calculus II).
    • Advisors are not able to override prerequisite requirements.

Transcripts:

Before registering for courses, you should have transcripts from all previous institutions, including High School, Community College, or other institutions sent to Admissions at UNC Charlotte.

Please note that it may take several days or weeks for your previous transcripts to be received and added to your UNC Charlotte transcript. It is in your best interest to have your transcripts sent to Admissions as soon as possible.

Course Credits:

Designing your schedule after all your obtained course credits have been processed through the Office of Admissions will help you from having to redesign your course schedule once more credits come in.

You can check Student Self-Service to see if Admissions has processed your credit by checking your UNC Charlotte transcript. Login to my.charlotte.edu. Then follow this path: Click on Student Self-Service icon –> Student Services/Student Accounts –> Student Records –> Unofficial Transcript.

The Academic Plan of Study lists all degree requirements for your academic program. The Academic Plan of Study is your roadmap that provides a recommended semester-by-semester schedule of courses you need to take for your major. It is also a tool to keep track of your academic progress.

Engineering Major Plans of Study:

Engineering Technology & Construction Management:

Each academic plan of study is split into 3 main columns (example image below):

  1. Course column – gives you a list of the courses you should register for.
  2. Pre/Corequisite column – shows you the pre-requisite course(s) you must have (or be taking at the same time if “Co-req” is listed) before you can take the course listed in the “course column.”
  3. Credit hours (Cr. Hrs) column – the number of credit hours for that specific course.
Schedule Example

Let’s Get Started!

Plan Ahead:

Draft your ideal and backup schedule before you attempt to register for classes. View the different course sections in Student Self-Service and add days and times to a schedule to create a draft.

Drafting a schedule will allow you to see if there are issues like attempting to register for classes offered at the same time. The classes you add to your plan are not guaranteed until you actually register for them.

Create Your Plan:

  • Login to your My Charlotte account.
  • Click on the Banner Self-Service icon, a purple gear.
  • Select the Student Services/Student Accounts tab.
  • Select Registration.
  • Click on Look-Up Classes to Add.
  • Select the term for which you’d like to register and click Submit.
  • Enter your search criteria. Search by subject. All the classes that match your criteria will be displayed.
  • Click on View Sections for the course you want to add.
  • Click the checkbox beside the course section you wish to add and click Register.
  • Do this for each course you want to register for.

Registration Videos and How-To’s:

Here are some videos which will help walk you through the most important information about registering with Student Self-Service. Look at the videos linked below, or watch the whole playlist!

First-Year Requirements (Beginning Fall 2023)

All new first-year students are initially advised by The Office of Student Development & Success (OSDS) within the W.S. Lee College of Engineering. Students must satisfy the following requirements in order to progress in the curriculum and matriculate to their major department.

Engineering Majors

  • Earn at least a 2.000 GPA in the first semester.
  • Complete all First-Year core courses in the First-Year curriculum with grades of C and above.
    • MATH 1241 and MATH 1242
    • PHYS 2101 and PHYS 2101L
    • CHEM 1251, CHEM 1251L or MEGR 1100 (for MEGR Majors)
    • ECGR 2103, MATH 2164 (for CPGR and EEGR Majors)
  • Pass all courses within two (2) attempts, including withdrawing from a course with a grade of W.
  • Complete the First-Year curriculum within four (4) regular semesters (does not include Summer semester).
  • Earn a 2.500 cumulative GPA upon completion of the First-Year core courses.

In addition, engineering majors must complete all of the above requirements before enrolling in W.S. Lee College of Engineering Sophomore-year engineering courses.

Engineering Technology and Construction Management Majors

  • Earn at least a 2.000 GPA in the first semester.
  • Complete all First-Year core courses in the First year curriculum with grades of C and above.
    • CIET/CMET Majors: ETGR 1201, ETCE 1104, ETCE 1222, ETCE 1222/L, ETCE 2105, CMET 1680, MATH 1103
    • MET Majors: ETGR 1201, ETME 1111, ETME 1112, MATH 1103
    • ETEL Majors: ETGR 1201, PHYS 1101, PHYS 1101L, MATH 1103
    • FRST Majors: ETGR 1201, ETFS 1120, ETFS 1252, ETFS 1244, MATH 1100
    • OSCT Majors: ETGR 1201, ETFS 1220, ETFS 1252, ETFS 1244, CMET 1680, MATH 1103
  • Pass all courses within three attempts, including withdrawing from a course with a grade of W.
  • Complete the First-Year curriculum within four (4) regular semesters (does not included Summer semester)
  • Earn a 2.000 cumulative GPA upon completion of the First-Year core courses.

In addition, engineering technology and construction management majors must complete all of the above requirements before enrolling in W.S. Lee College of Engineering Junior-year courses.

General Education requirements will require students to complete ten (10) courses (31-32 credit hours total). These courses are listed below;

Requirements

  • First-Year Writing (WRDS 1103 or 1104)
  • Second-Year Critical Thinking and Communication (CTCM 2530, formely LBST 2301)
  • Quantitative and Data (MATH or STAT)
  • Quantitative and Data (various)
  • Natural Science with Lab
  • Natural Science with Lab Optional
  • Four (4) Theme Courses
    • Two (2) Global (XXXX1501 and XXXX 1502)
    • Two (2) Local (XXXX 1511 and XXXX 1512)

Disclaimer: **Please do not be alarmed about how to complete your general education requirements as they are already incorporated into each Lee College of Engineering academic plan of study.**

Tips for Registering for General Education Courses:

  • When registering for courses, it is important that you look at and follow your major Academic Plan of Study.
  • If you cannot register for your WRDS required course, you CAN register for one of the themed (Global or Local) courses.
  • Look closely at your Academic Plan of Study to see if there is an associated lab required for a science elective.

Requirements

The W.S. Lee College of Engineering requires all students to own a laptop computer.

Beyond college and university baseline requirements for new students who enrolled in Fall 2023 or beyond, the W.S. Lee College of Engineering requires all student laptops to meet specific minimum requirements and be Windows based. This is due to the engineering software packages our students often have to use, many of which are graphics intensive. For students who enrolled prior to Fall 2020, visit the Mosaic website to learn about laptop requirements.

2023 Mosaic Laptop Requirements
Windows10 or higher (OS) - Required
64 bit (OS) - Required
intel Core i7 or higher or AMD Ryzen (Processor)  - Required
16GB or higher (RAM) - Required
2GB or higher SSD (RAM - graphics) - Required
512 GB or higher SSD (Hard drive/storage) - Required
14in or higher (screen size) - Required
USB-A or USB-C Port(s) + adapter - Required
HDMI Port(s) - Required
Camera, microphone, speaker(s) - Required
3-button mouse (for Mechanical Engineering CAD Apps) - Recommended

The W.S Lee College of Engineering also requires that laptops, for all undergraduate and graduate students taking College of Engineering courses, have a microphone, camera, and speakers.

Owning and using laptops will greatly benefit engineering students who decide to pursue successful academic endeavors at the W. S. Lee College of Engineering. Numerous engineering applications are available for engineering students to install on their laptops, some at no cost and some at minimal cost, and engineering students can access hundreds of engineering apps Using Mosaic’s Mosaic Anywhere from any computer with an internet connection.

Visit the Mosaic website and learn more about our Mosaic Computing Resources for Students.

Please note:

Chromebooks, iPads, tablets, and mobile devices do not meet the Lee College of Engineering laptop requirement. IMPORTANT NOTE: MacBooks ARE NOT recommended for students in the Lee College of Engineering as it does not meet the processing power and dedicated graphics video card (2GB) requirements.

Here are pro Tips for creating your semester schedule. There are tips and tricks for registering and things to consider when making your schedule. You can also view a How To List with more tips to help you with registration.

How to’s

Registration

  • Register for your Mathematics course first! This will allow you to register for any co-requisites of your math course, which must be taken at the same time.
  • Register for the other courses listed in your major academic plan of study including general education courses.
  • Waitlist – If a course is full, see if it has a waitlist and add your name to the waitlist. You will be notified via UNC Charlotte email if a seat becomes available. There is no guarantee that you will get a seat, but it is a great tool.

    • Check out the information about how to use a Waitlist.
    • Check your UNC Charlotte email often so you do not miss any notifications!

Schedule Wizard

  • Schedule Wizard is a tool you can use to make different schedules and choose from those schedules when registering for classes.
  • Log in to your My UNC Charlotte Portal and look for the Schedule Wizard icon under the Quick Links section to begin creating potential schedules.
  • Select the schedule that works best for you, and click Send to Shopping Cart.
  • REMEMBER! You need to click “Register” in Banner Self-Service to complete the registration process

*Note:

Schedule Wizard does not check for or display restrictions on courses.

  • If a course has a restriction (such as major or classification) you will receive an error in Banner if you do not meet the qualifications to register for the course.

Things to know when Looking up Courses

Courses at UNC Charlotte are made up of a course prefix (letters) and a four (4) digit course number. The Course Summary Search page (found in your banner self service page) lists ALL courses offered at Charlotte by subject. Here are some common course subjects you may need to register for are;

  • MATH – Mathematics
  • WRDS – Writing, Rhetoric & Digital Studies
  • ENGR – Engineering
  • ETGR – Engineering Technology
  • MEGR – Mechanical Engineering
  • CEGR – Civil Engineering
  • ECGR – Electrical and Computer Engineering
  • SEGR – Industrial and Systems Engineering
  • ETCE – Civil Engineering Technology
  • CMET – Construction Management
  • ETEL – Electrical Engineering Technology
  • MET – Mechanical Engineering Technology
  • If the course number contains an H (i.e. HIST 1502 H..), the course is for Honors Students only.
    • Students must be enrolled in the University Honors Program, Crown Scholars Program, Martin Scholars Program or have permission from the Honors College.
    • To request permission, contact: Colette Chenault (Office Administrator) at cchenaul@charlotte.edu.

Charlotte Honors College Information

The University Academic Calendar

The Academic Calendar is an important tool in a student’s toolbelt! It is the university schedule for all important dates and deadlines:

  • First & Last day of classes.
  • Exam week dates.
  • Drop/Add deadline at the start of the semester.
  • Last day to change or Opt-Out of Grade Replacement
  • University holidays and closed dates.

Gmail & Google Calendar Pro-Tips

Gmail:

Your university email address is the communication link for all official communication from the university, advisors, faculty, and Canvas!

  • Create labels to house different categories of emails
  • Create ‘rules’ to automatically file incoming emails, decluttering your inbox for better management.

Google Calendar:

Google Calendar is a powerful tool to manage your time as a student!

How to set up your Canvas App best for YOU!

To Download the Canvas app search your App Store for Canvas.

  • When the app launches, click on the “Find my school” button.
  • Type: University of North Carolina at Charlotte
  • This will take you to Web Authentication @ Charlotte
  • Enter your Niner Net username and password
  • Authorize and once authenticated your registers courses should be listed.

Course notification preferences

Join other students who share your interests in engineering, engineering technology, and construction management. Build new friendships, delve into your interests, develop leadership and practical skills, network with professionals, and establish yourself outside the classroom.

Engineering, engineering technology, and construction management are all about teamwork. It is easy to show up to class, do the work, get good grades, and graduate. BUT if you truly want to immerse yourself in the W.S. Lee College of Engineering community, join one or more engineering academic enrichment programs from the list below!

WE Engage!

  • This is a Women in Engineering program that promotes and fosters peer and professional networking among women in the W.S. Lee College of Engineering.
  • Click HERE for more information.

Engage ME!

  • This is a diversity and inclusion program designed to build a strong community of W.S. Lee College of Engineering students, foster academic & professional development, and position students to recognize and seize opportunities for success.
  • Click HERE for more information.

MAPS -Maximizing Academic & Personal Success

  • MAPS is a Peer Coaching Transition program that works with students to establish personal connections; learn, understand, and apply academic success and professional development strategies; and grow in self-confidence and personal independence.
  • Click HERE for more information.

College of Engineering Ambassadors Program

  • Leadership program that offers W.S. Lee College of Engineering students an opportunity to represent and promote the College to prospective students and guests.
  • Click HERE for more information.